I earned my first steady paycheck watering rose bushes at a nursery for a dollar an hour.

I don't feel stupid, just inadequate. After three years of studying the law, I'm very much aware of how little I know.

I have learned not to read reviews. Period. And I hate reviewers. All of them, or at least all but two or three. Life is much simpler ignoring reviews and the nasty people who write them. Critics should find meaningful work.

I was a lawyer for 10 years, and several of my clients had the misfortune, through no fault of my own, of going to prison. I visited them occasionally.

Please give me fifty more years of work and fun, then an instant death when I'm sleeping.

I was on the verge of tears, so I turned and ran past the trailer and along the field road until I was safely out of their sight. Then I ducked into the cotton and waited for friendly voices. I sat on the hot ground, surrounded by stalks four feet tall, and I cried, something I really hated to do.

Writing's still the most difficult job I've ever had - but it's worth it.